Wearing apparel



Jan. 20, 1948. M. H. MIDDENDORF WEARING APPAREL Filed Feb. 1, 1947 I N 5 EN TOR.

Arralavz Patented Jan. 20, 1948 UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFILCE.

2,434,743 WEARING APPliRi'lii- Marie H.- Middendbrf; Burbank} Calif;

Application February 1, 1947, Serial No. 725,925

2 Claims.

This invention'relates to wearing apparel and the method of making same. More particularly, thi's invention has to do with the novel construction of wearing apparel, such as skirt's, slacks and eds Wearing apparel, and particularly skirts, made from knitted material, such as jersey, have a tendency to bag at certain portions which are subjected to greater strain than other portions. Also, adjacent apparel such as a shirt, has a tendency to work out and become disengaged from the waistband because of the movements of the body of the wearer. Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide wearing apparel and a method of making the same, which will overcome these difficulties.

V Another object isto provide wearing apparel having the above characteristics which can be constructed from asingle piece of material, except for a resilient reinforcement of the waistband, thereby simplifying manufacture.

Another object is to provide wearing apparel, such as a skirt, that may be turned about cir cumferentially of the waist of the wearer and worn without regard to front, back or side positions.

A further object of this invention is to provide the construction of a novel waistband which shall be continuous throughout the circumference thereof and possessed of the characteristic of preventing relative movement of adjacent apparel in which it is in contact.

A still further object is to provide a wearing apparel having the above characteristics that will be simple and easy to construct, durable, selfconforming to the body of a wearer and which will be relatively cheap to manufacture.

The above and other objects will be made apparent throughout the further description of the invention when taken in connection with the accc-mpanying drawings wherein like reference characters refer to like parts. It is to be distinctly understood that the drawings are not a definition of the invention but merely illustrate one form by means of which the invention may be efiectuated.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a single piece of tubular cloth embodied in the invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a completed skirt embodied in the invention.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken between pleats, illustrating one step in the method of making a skirt embodied in the invention.

2 g 4- 1's; sectitnar view'" taken along the= Iine V of Fi 32 A i Fig. 5 is" a sectional view takenalong thelifie v+ v of Fi 21 Fig! 6 is aview similar to Fig. 4 showing the pleat presseain position against adiiacent'rna tenet illustrating another step in the method of making the skirt; a e

the rdrm shown, there is employed asi'n'g'le piece at tutina-r" mater al represented in it"; en-- tiret by Fr. This material i's-c'ut to any desired length and is preferably a knitted materialsuch 'erse'y which is possessed of considerable n'c'y' laterally thereof: and little or reeillency lengthwise or longitudinallythereof'.

This material H1 is first cut-to the desired lengtlrand pleated adjacent" the top and siren-m ferentia'lly thereof as shown by Fig. 2:. These numerous pleats [H are ormed inwardly'of the tubular material and preferably by a single seam 1 2. The width of the meats tapers from the top downwardly to provide a gradual reduction in the diameter of the skirt. The pleats II are thenpressed flat against the adjacent material as clearly shown in Fig. 6.

The precise number" of pleats and the amount of material folded over to form each pleat may vary somewhat, depending upon original diameter of the tubular stock used and the finished waistband diameter desired. The length of the pleats is preferably sufficient to cause their lower ends to extend slightly below the hip line of the wearer.

The construction of the waist or band portion is an important feature of the present invention. This step in the method consists of folding a portion l3 of the top edge of the skirt to form an annular channel [4 for receiving an elastic band I5. In the preferred form, the folded portion [3 extends downwardly for a part of the width of the band l5 thereby leaving the lower edge l6 of the band l5 free and unattached to the skirt. The folded portion 13, including the pleats ll, upper portion of band l5 and the outer corresponding portion of the skirt, is then sewed circumferentially with elastic thread. Ordinary thread may be used provided the belt assembly is stretched to the extent of the resiliency of the cloth I 0 during the sewing operation, although from experiment I have found the use of elastic thread preferable.

It is important that the waistband be continuous without slits, plackets, connecting or fastening devices of any sort. Such openings,

as J

55 plackets or fastening devices tend to disrupt the 3 appearance of the waistline and also permit slippage and relative movement of that portion of a garment, such as a shirt, adjacent to such opening, placket or fastening device.

By constructing the belt or waistline in the manner above described, relative slippage of adjacent apparel, such as a shirt, is prevented by the expansion and contraction of the folded portion It which tends in some manner or other to grip the adjacent material. Also the free edge l6 of the resilient band l contributes considerably to this feature of non-slippage between the Y skirt and adjacent apparel.

While in the preferred form the elastic band Accordingly, there is provided a skirt which consists of a single piece of tubular material, an elastic band and some thread, which skirt when made of knitted or jersey material will automatically fit itself to the body of the wearer regardless of its circumferential position, whereby the skirt may be turned about the waist and avoid bagging by eliminating continuous stress on any one portion of the skirt. The particular construction of the waistband prevents relative movement of the adjacent wearing apparel and thereby maintains the skirt and adjacent wearing apparel on the wearer in a correct and proper position, which makes for comfort and a neat appearance.

The adjacent pleats ll preferably do not overlap, but instead, in the region of the waistband, are spaced from each other. The waistband zone of the skirt retains sufiicient resiliency and stretchability to permit the skirt to be put on either over the head and shoulders, or over the hips, and will hold its final position upon the body without the use of a separate belt. Belts manufacture of slacks, shorts and the like. The lower portion of the tubular material of Fig. 2 may be longitudinally split to the region of the crotch and formed into separate leg portions whenever slacks are to be made. Other modifications may be made in the single form illustrated and described without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A skirt, including a tubular piece of material having a top and a bottom, longitudinal pleats circumferentially disposed about the top of said material, said pleats extending downwardly for a predetermined distance, a portion of the top of the material folded inwardly and forming a channel and an annular elastic band disposed in said channel, the folded portion, the band and the material opposed to said band forming a belt assembly, said belt assembly having elastic threads circumferentially stitched therethrough, forming an integral, continuous waistband.

2. A skirt in accordance with claim 1 wherein the said folded portion forms a channel sufiiciently to receive only a portion of the width of the said elastic band, whereby the lower attached portion of the elastic band is free and unattached to adjacent material.

MARIE H. MIDDENDORF.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PA Ili-NTS Number Name Date 722,854 Klein Mar. 17, 1903 887,589 Cohen et a1. May 12, 1908 2,088,302 McKeever July 2'7, 1937 2,141,239 Diamond Dec. 27, 1938 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 8,938 France May 15, 1908 (Addition to No. 377,128) 

